Card panel



April 26, 1960 w, W R ETAL 2,933,998

CARD PANEL Filed Dec. 13, 1956 INVENTOR. WENDELL B.WARD

ATTORNEYS United States Patent '0 "ice CARD PANEL Wendell B. Ward andStanley K. Franks, Marion,'0l 1io, assiguors to Fulfillment Corporationof America, Marion, Ohio, a corporation of Delaware Application December13, 1956, Serial No. 628,128

4 Claims. (Cl. 95-85) The present invention relates to an improved panelprovided with runways for supporting card indexes in parallel relationand from which any card can be readily removed and replaced withoutdisturbing the remaining cards. 1 e

In large engineering concerns, particularly those which entertain bidsfrom outside contractors, for example, Government engineeringdepartments, it is customary to provide metal panels on which detachablecards are mounted, pertaining to the details of a structure on whichbids are to be solicited. These card-bearing panels are photographed foroffset printing purposes and the printed material is incorporated inlarge loose-leaf specification or code books which are consulted'by theprime contractors. When changes in design or dimensions in the structurebecome necessary, only that card or cards affected by the changes needbe removed from the panel and substitutions made, in order that revisedsheets panel and in overlapping relation to leave'exposed the printedinformation on the upper portion of each card for photographic purposes.

The runways in the prior panels are usually formed as metal strips withupstanding edges; and riveted or otherwise secured at each end to themetal panel. Metal strips of this type are difiicult to make and aretherefore expensive, since they involve the deformation of heavy gaugemetal along both edges of the strip. This bending or upsetting of theedge requires special tools and, inasmuch as it is as long as the panel,the latterrunning 19" or 20" long, unless extremeprecaution is taken,stresses and-strains may be introduced into the strip which communicatethemselves to the thin metal panel and tend to cause the panel to twist.

In accordance with one of the objects of our. invention, we propose toprovide an entirely new form of strip which requires no bent orupset'edges, and therefore, is

less expensive to make and, in addition, the strip lends itself to ajnewform of panel plate which is less apt to become deformed than theearlier panels.

In carrying out-this object, we'make the strips of flat metal-and obtainthe necessary spacing under the edges ,"of the strips to accommodate thetongues of the cards by, modifying the structure of the panel member. I

In order to prevent the tendency of the prior panel to bend orotherwisedistort on account of its considerable area (usuallyv about 240 squareinches of very thin metal),

support for the cards that are arranged 'in overlapping "relationbetween the runways.

2,933,998 Patented Apr. 26, 1960 However, in practice it has been foundthat these bars strengthen the central portions of the panel only in thetransverse direction and would leave the remainder of the panel, both inthe longitudinal and transverse directions, without any support.Consequently such panels would tend to curl, generally inthe transversedirection, and the mounted cards would follow the contour of the paneland give a distorted photograph.

In accordance with another object of our invention, we eliminate the useof these bars entirely and, instead, provide corrugations formed out ofthe panel metal itself, these corrugations extending not onlylongitudinally of the panel, but also at various places across the panelover the entire length of the latter, so that the panel is reinforcednot only in the transverse direction, but also in the longitudinaldirection. The spacings between these corrugations are sufficientlyclose that there is no appreciable area of the panel which does notreceive support both in the longitudinal and transverse directions fromat least two or more of these corrugations. In this manher, the panel asa whole remains perfectly flat and these corrugations serve even in amore positive manner than the bar's of the prior panels as a rest orsupport for the cards.

The general object of our invention is to provide an improved panel thatcan not only be made much less expensively than the prior panels forindex cards, but also resists any tendency to curl or bend so that theindex cards are inserted between the runways in a perfectly flatcondition with adequate support underneath and this, in turn, produces adistortionless photograph for offset printing.

Other objects and features will be apparent as the specification isperused in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 shows a plan view of the improved panel,

. with cards detachably secured thereto in overlapping relation, andhaving a portion cut away from the cards to show the front view of thepanel itself;

edges of the panelgthis view is taken along line 4-4 in Figure '3;

Figure 5 is a perspective view of a corner detail of thepanehp'articularly showing the card clip stop provided at each end ofthe card-guide runways and which stop determines the uppermost andlowermost position of the cards, while;

Figure 6 represents a short portion of the length of one of theindexcards in order to show the character of the locking ears.

ness of'a typicallpanel is about M g". A panel of this type:is used byengineernig concerns for supporting a large number of cards, for exampleof the order'of 96,

the'icards being approximately 11" long and 1%" wide,

in overlapping relation, the array of cards extending graphic film orplate which is later used for etching a' plate in the so-called offsetprinting process by which .pages are printed and contained in a largespecification book. Contractors who compete for the work of theengineering concern have access to these books to determine the detailsof any product that is required, for example parts of airplanes, forwhich the Government is soliciting bids.

It is obvious that from time to time some of the details of the productrequire changes and, in order to give the bidding contractor the latestinformation on the structural requirements of the material or product,any individual card that is affected by the change required is withdrawnfrom the panel and a new card substituted, after which a new photographof the entire panel and the assembled cards is made and reinserted inthe bidding book. It is therefore necessary that some provision be madefor withdrawing one or more of the cards quickly from the panel andsubstituting other cards which carry the changes in the structuraldetails.

While the panel and assembled cards find their greatest utility inconnection with offset printing for the purpose of preparing a bookwhich is open to prime contractors, it is obvious that the panel and thecards can be used wherever a convenient filing system is required, andparticularly where detachable cards are necessary as,

.for example, in a real estate brokers ofiice where ready reference asto the available number of houses for sale or for rent and the detailsof each are kept and the cards may have to be replaced constantly foreither new information to be applied thereon, or at the conclusion of atransaction. Many other places where panels and assembled cards can beused to advantage will readily suggest themselves to those skilled inthe art.

The first card 2 of the group is usually a heading card and may, forexample, have printed thereon the term Supply Catalog, as indicated, andcontain two intermediate spaced lines to effect three columns. The firstcolumn may be designated Index Number, the middle column Stock Numberand the third column Description. The succeeding cards which on thedrawing are designated 2a and of which there may be as many as 93, allin overlapping relation, may contain code numbers under the heading ofIndex Number and Stock Number, referring to a code book of theengineering concern, for example, a Government contracting office. Underthe heading of Description there may be a few word description of thearticle, or perhaps code number, which upon reference to the code book,will give a full description of the article or product.

A few typical numbers and descriptions have been inserted on thedrawings. It will be understood that these numbers and descriptionsfollow directly below the column headings given on the leading card 2.

These cards are, in a typical case, approximately 1%" wide and perhaps11 long, and it is essential that during the photographing operationthey lie absolutely flat on the panel, supported at several intermediatepositions to assure this flatness of configuration. Itis also essentialthat the panel itself be devoid of any curl or distortion in shape, anyone consideration of which may produce distortion in the photographicreproduction, and perhaps blurring or indecipherable code numbers ordescription appearing on the printed sheet.

Whereas, in prior panels stiffening ribs have been welded or otherwisesecured lengthwise of each panel, we have found that the weldingoperation as applied to these ribs is not only an expensive item ofmanufacture,

1 direction.

.4 but there is some tendency for the heat of the weld and the pressureexerted at the welding location to introduce distortion into the metalof the panel and cause the latter to curl in one or more directions.

Moreover, since these ribs are formed as items separate from the paneland welded thereto in the lengthwise direction, it is impossible toeliminate any tendency to curl or otherwise distort the panel in thetransverse We have discovered that by the use of corrugations which runnot only longitudinally of the panel but also at spaced points acrossthe width of the panel, the tendency to curl in the longitudinal andtransverse directions of the panel is completely avoided and also theexpense of providing strengthening ribs along the length of the paneland the welding operation are eliminate Thus, as shown on the drawings,particularly in Figure 2, longitudinal corrugations 3 are providedextending equidistantly on each side of the longitudinal metal of thepanel and also transverse corrugations 4, of which usually four areprovided (although only three are shown on account of the out-awayportion in Figure 1), and extending as far as possible in the transversedirection and equidistantly spaced along the length of the panel. Thesecorrugations which represent metal drawn from the body of the panel, andtherefore integral therewith, may extend for approximately 7 downwardly,assuming that the thickness of the panel is approximately & It has beenfound that this depth of corrugation formed out of this thin metal iseasily obtainable by usual pressing methods and Without any substantialchange in the thickness of the metal at the location of eachcorrugation.

In view of the close network of the corrugations, both longitudinal andtransverse, etfected in this manner, it has been found that all areas ofthe considerably sized panel, particularly those between the cardrunways which will be described hereinafter, are protected fromdistortion and since these corrugations can be formed by one and thesame pressing operation, the manipulation of the panel during itsmanufacture is reduced to a minimum.

As a precaution against curl or distortion at the upper and lower edgesof the panel, due to momentary stresses that may be set up in the metalduring the corrugating process, we may provide a pair of shortcorrugations 5 at each edge and positioned to the right and left of thetwo longitudinal corrugations 3, these corrugations extending almost asfar as the edge of the panel in one direction and not quite reaching theposition of the first transverse corrugation.

Thus, in a panel that measures approximately 18" long and 12" wide,having a pair of longitudinal corrugations 3 located at approximately 3%from center to center and 5" between each of the transversecorrugations, all of which corrugations measure approximately /2" wide,we have found that the small corrugations 5 need extend about 1%" longand have a width of approximately /1", located to the right of theright-hand corrugations 3, approximately 1% between centers andapproximately 1% from the center of the nearer transverse corrugationand the middle point of the short vertical corrugation.

These short corrugations 5 are not entirely indispensable since thelongitudinal and transverse corrugations 3, 4 impart a high degree offlatness to the panel. But in order to account for any slight variationsin the character of aluminum or other metal, the thickness of the metal,or in the slight variations of the corrugationforming process, it maybe, and usually is, desirable to provide the short corrugations 5 of thecharacter described,

positioned at the upper and lower edges of the panel and as seen moreparticularly in Figures 1 and 3.

While we do not wish to be confined to any theory as to the manner inwhich these short corrugations oper ate to compensate for the variationsabove mentioned,

grasses I, a ames: "ar a d lower ledges of the panel '4 are being formedor, in dditioinalmetal at "the loca- H I ach' corrugation demanded bythe mg'dutwardotthe panelinietal when the corrugation p taxman-seen is,we have found instances; depending upon variations of h 1, "d'epth andposition of the main corrulons, etc' ith the'shortcorrugation in theapproxiteppsi tioh shown and described above, is desirable, :ghitvfvillbe understood that our invention is not 'r sure presence or the absenceof these It i sapparent that the latter are and prdvidedat the same timethat "3,;4 "are'formed so that no extra co esnecess'ar'yfin thisconnection. andftlieheading card 2 are arranged p ingfrelatiomithe widthof each card that is xpiised 'yond'th'e overlap beingiapproximately 51f, "stiiiicient to 'iuicoverthe code numbers and shortdescription-within the columns indicated by thelh'eadotogiaphicpurposes. In order to mainntal parallel a'nd uniform overlappingatioiywe providefguidebars which cooperate with diet ears1on thecards,theseears being of a character .as "described hereinafter, to permit anyone card, in 'the heading card, to be readilyremoved from its 7 on thepahelwithout removing any other card, d a" ew, card substituted with newinformation theref' e d card asjthedevelopments or changes L e require'fr'omtime to time.

e ars jwhich are made of steel and have upthe bars being: riveted orotherwise the panel, fwe'haveprovided a'plain, flat form I If'stainlesssteehie. without upset marginal e gs andi'ivetd, dicated'at7, to -rcorrugaticnsfi that are formed in the pan'l'sirniiltaneously'with the corrugations 3, 4 and 5. The corrugations 8 are of smallerwidth thanthe width of the bar 6, as shown more clearly in Figure B soasto leave a pair 'of overhanging'edges 9 at each sideof'the'corrugations 8.

;; --Thus, the bar 6 can be inexpensively made out of strip eelfaindlthecorrugation "to which it is attached can (ii-med during thesan'ie"operationas the other corrugahs.; -It sliould also be "listed that thecorrugations 8 edid that lies between the main longitudinal corrugations3 and the outer edges of the panel.

The cards 2 and 2a are provided with crescent-shaped cut-outs 10 (Figure6) which leave ears 11 of a curvilinear configuration and extendingupwardly and inwardly within the opening 10. The lower edge 12 of theopening 10 is spaced approximately from the lower edge 13 of the cardand this spacing determines the width of each card that extends beyondthe overlapping portions, i.e. the portion of the card that is exposedalong the upper edge thereof, and showing the code numbers and shortdescription when the cards are nested together.

In order detachably to secure each card to the panel, the ears 11 arede-pressed inwardly by the operator and caused to fit around and intothe space left by the two outer overhanging ledges 9 of the bar 6, andthe latter will hold the ears in a slight downwardly de-pressed positionto give sufficient friction to the up and down movement of the card andthus cause the latter to maintain its overlapping or nested positionwith respect to the adjacent cards.

In order to remove a card from the guide bars 6, it is merely necessaryto pull slightly upwardly one end of the card in order to disengage theear from one of the overhanging edges 9, at which time the opposite earwill r forms of panels it has been proposed q anipii'r'poseinstf'erig'theiii-ng a considerable afea'of the pai'ilfat least in thelongitudinal direction "disengage from the other overhanging'edge. Thiscan be donewit'hout disturbin'g in any substantial degree theposireadily'removed and a new card with the changed infor-.

mation thereon inserted. New photographs of the entire panel with thearray of up-to-date cards can then be taken to bring the specificationbook upto-date. When the panel and contained cards are photographed,some reduction in size is made in order that the photograph copy will beof a size comparable to the specification book.

When the cards are assembled for the first time on the panel, theheadingcard 2 is first applied by bending the ears 11-and pressing them intothe space left by the two outer overhanging ledges 9 and the remainingcards are applied likewise, but resting upon the next upper card but toleave exposed a space, controlled by the distance between the edges 12and the bottom edge 13 of the card along the upper edge of the card onwhich each succeeding'card rests. As many as ninety cards can be appliedtoa standard size of panel, of which the dimensions were previouslygiven, and yet every card is readily detachable from the panel forsubstitution or replacement purposes.

In order to determine the position of the heading card 2 with respect tothe panel, we may provide a pair of stop clips14 which are positioned atthe top of the panel, "made'of springy metal, and has fingers 15 at eachend that fit into the space 9 left by theoverhanging portion ofthe guidebar 6. Each clip 14 is bent upwardly at the middl'e so as to leave anarrow space between the clip "and the upper surface of the bar in orderto receive the thickness'of'the heading card, as can be seen in Figure'1. These clips are slidable along the guide bars 6 so as to 40"effcctany change of'position of the heading card 2, but,

[ingenerah'they are employed to prevent sliding the head- "ing card upbeyond the upper edges of the bars 6.

Similarly, a p'air of stop clips may also be provided at the lower edgeof the panel in order to support the lower edges'ofthelowermost card 2a,since this edge does not "receive any support from an overlapping card.

These cards are usually constituted of soft bendable -paper,'suitablefor insertion in atypewriter, by which the 'fcode'numbers'are appliedand, in order to remain in a fiat state for photographic purposes, it isdesirable that the upper surfaces of the corrugations 3, 4 and 5 and thebars 6 shall be at the same level.

If desired, the outer edges of the panel may also be bent inwardly, asshown at 16, and this edge also is of the same height as the bars andthe corrugations so as to furnish support to the outermost ends of thecards. It is apparent that any strengthening effect in the longitudinaldirection offered by the flanges 16 adds itself to that provided by thelongitudinal corrugations 3 and the bars 6.

From the foregoing, it is apparent that we have disclosed a panel forindex cards in which the manufacture requires, apart from the rivetingof the bars 6 and the formation of the flanges 16, only one operation inproviding the combined panel strengthening and card supports in oneoperation and the positions of the latter, together with the optionalshort corrugations 5, are such that the panel remains absolutely flat inboth the longitudinal and transverse directions, is rugged for handling,and yet maintains the lightness of weight which is an important itemwhere many thousands of these panels are in use or in stock in thecontracting-specification departments of large engineering companies.

It will be understood that various modifications and arrangements instructure could be made without depart- '7 ing from the spirit of ourinvention and, accordingly, we desire to comprehend such modificationsand substitutions of equivalents as may be considered to come within thescope of theappended claims..

Having thus fully described our invention, what we claim as new anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

1. A rectangular metal panel for indexing cards in position forphotographic reproduction, a plurality of corrugations extendinglengthwise of the panel, a plurality of corrugations extendingtransverselyof the panel and at intermediate positions thereof wherebythe panel is stiffened in the longitudinal and transverse directions bysaid corrugations, the longitudinal corrugations having flat topportions, a pair of bars having a planar surface and secured to the topportions of the outermost longitudinal corrugations, all of thecorrugations being integral with the panel and of substantially the samethickness of metal and of the same height, said bars having widthsgreater than the width of the corrugations on which they rest in orderto provide outer overhanging side edges, whereby the index cards can beslidably carried between the bars and guided by said outer overhangingside edges and supported by all of said corrugations.

2. A rectangular metal panel for indexing cards in position forphotographic reproduction, a plurality of corrugations extendinglengthwise of the panel, a plurality of corrugations extendingtransversely of the panel and at intermediate positions thereof wherebythe panel is stiffened in the longitudinal and transverse directions bysaid corrugations, the longitudinal corrugations having flat topportions, a pair of bars having a planar surface and secured to the topportions of the outermost longitudinal corrugations, all of thecorrugations being integral with the panel, of substantially the samethickness of metal and of the same height, said bars having widthsgreater than the width of the corrugations on which they rest in orderto provide outer overhanging side edges, whereby the index cards can beslidably carried between the bars and guided by said outer overhangingside edges and supported by all of said corrugations, the upper surfaceof the bars being of sub stantially the same height as the corrugationsin order that the latter may serve as supports for the cards.

3. A rectangular metal panel for indexing cards in position forphotographic reproduction, a plurality of corrugations extendinglengthwise of the panel, a plurality of corrugations extendingtransversely of the panel, said corrugations forming a series ofrectangular networks over substantially the entire area of the panel,

'8 said. corrugations being integralwith the panel and, substantiallythe same thickness, metal bars secured'to upraised portions of at leasttwo of the longitudinal 'corrugations, said bars being of greater widththan the corrugations to which they are secured so as to leave anoverhanging lip, the outermost lips of said bars being adapted toreceive retaining portions of the cards in order to permit the cards tohe slid along the bars to any desired position with respect to oneanother, the longitudinal edges of the panel being bent in the samedirection as the longitudinal and transverse corrugations, whereby thelongitudinal corrugations and the bent-up edges serve to strengthen thepanel in the longitudinal direction and the transverse corrugationsserve to strengthen the panel in the transverse direction.

4. A rectangular metal panel for indexing cards in position forphotographic reproduction, a plurality of corrugations extendinglengthwise of the panel, 'a plurality of corrugations extendingtransversely of the panel, said corrugations forming a series ofrectangular networks over substantially the entire area of the panel,said corrugations being integral with the panel and of substantially thesame thickness, metal bars securedto upraised portions of at least twoof the longitudinal corrugations, said bars being of greater width thanthe corrugations to which they are secured so as to leave an overhanginglip, the outermost lips of said bars being adapted to receive retainingportions of the cards in order to permit the cards to be slid'along thebars to any desired position with respect to one another, thelongitudinal edges of the panel being bent in thesame direction as thelongitudinal and transverse'corrugations, whereby the longitudinalcorrugations and the bent-up edges serve to strengthen the panel in thelongitudinal direction and the transverse corrugations serve tostrengthen the panel in the transverse direction, the height of saidlongitudinal and transverse corrugations, also the metal bars and thebent-up edge flanges being the same in order to furnish support for thecards that are detachably mounted on the bars. 1

References Cited in the file of this patent v UNITED STATES PATENTS1,403,669 Chouinard Ian. 11, 1922 1,563,045 Schafr'er Nov. 24, 19251,903,206 Wassell Mar. 28, 1933 2,081,841 Shailor May 25,1931 2,268,417Nauschater Dec. 30, 1941

